Teach to earn this summer

CEBU, Philippines - A lot of people consider the summer holiday as a great time for traveling and enjoying whatever the season has to offer.

However, enterprising people also see the occasion as an opportunity to earn some good cash by establishing a personal business to make them busy. Creative individuals and groups prove that starting an income-generating endeavor does not necessarily require a hefty startup capital.

In fact, they have shown that having an extra revenue flow on the side is actually possible by just being confident in using God-given talents to teach and share these to other people—and earn at the same time.

Generally, the summer months are the best time for these people to do their initiative as some are on the lookout for something they can be productive with while taking the pleasure of the vacation break.

They do summer workshops and lessons independently or with a company in arts, music, academics and personality development. For the most part, sports clinics are the most popular activities this summer among children and teenagers—and sometimes adults.

While there are summer camp centers in Cebu that offer short-term summer courses on sports activites and specialized trainings, some ordinary people with extraordinary talents and skills are gaining good benefits from helping develop the abilities of others as well.            

The love for music is what led 18-year-old Shem Dominique Abay, a resident of Barangay Poblacion Talisay City, to succeed in his long time passion: Playing the violin.

Abay, who is an event violinist, learned to play the instrument for years until an incident came, “I stopped for two years because of the hardships of  learning the violin but then relearned it all by self study.”  

Later on, he discovered that he was capable of  teaching his talent, which prompted him to start his own enterprise when he was in first year college.

He wanted to be independent because he believed most companies have limited sessions which he thought are not very really productive, effective and rates are mostly expensive.

The young mentor find his musical passion as a good investment and, in fact it is his motivation to realize his dream of having his own training center.

“The talent that God has given should be invested and should somehow return to you,” the teenager told The FREEMAN. “But everything has limits. Having talent or skill should not mean that you can leech on people.”

Abay teaches basics and techniques of violin playing on one-on-one basis or sometimes in groups not just during summer but also anytime of the year and his rate is P300 for a two- hour session.

Although this time he only has three students, he believes summer is still the best time for learning: “Because some of my mentees also have summer classes.”

“Most of my sessions happen in my mentee's homes,” he said. “Sometimes at school just meet ups at parks or plazas.”

When he started his venture, his talent and instrument—not money—were only his biggest assets to pursue his passion, adding that helping people who have passion for music was his motivation and that earning was his last priority.

“I dont actually ask for really big amount from my students and sometimes even extend our sessions without pay,” he shared. “Hearing them play is rewarding enough.”

He said: “My students just come, I really don't know why. Maybe my contacts and by word of mouth through my gigs around the city and some outside… Sometimes people see me play and they ask me if I teach.”

While Abay desire to have a stable job in the future, for now he’s thinking of investing in his musical passion and dream to be part of a big time music business.

The violinist said the money that he earns somehow helps him and his family get through although it is not that much.

“Keep up the passion… that is where you start,” Abay advises people who have talents but are frustrated on how to use these for fun and earning. “Just love what you do and do what you love and that will lead you to success and ultimately, to happines.”

Here is The FREEMAN’s compilation of other summer clinics/trainings that creative and enterprising people take advantage of to have fun and earn some extra cash during the summer holiday:

1. Dancesport workshop. There are dance organizations in Cebu that are committed at developing the talents and skills of its members and improving their confidence level through dancing. Like the famous DanceSport Team Cebu City which one of its members has committed to teach dancesport to children in their subdivision.

Recel Niña Mondejar, 18-year-old and a resident of Barangay Tungkil, Minglanilla, Cebu, said a barangay councilor, who is also a dancer, has encouraged her to have an affordable dance workshop for children in their neigborhood.

“Every summer naa gyud dancesport workshop sa amo barangay naay naka-assign nga dance teacher to teach children,” she shared. “The nice thing is that wa pa toy bayad.”

However, she said, the subdivision (Minglanilla Homes) president wanted the parents to pay her even just a little amount of money in exchange for the learning of their  kids.

That’s why this May, most probably, she and her friend, the councilor, will again teach the children for P10 - P20 per session, she added.

“I’m really teaching not just because of money,” she noted, “but also because I want to share my talent to those children.”

The officials in their community decided to do the workshop every summer season so the children there would have a recreational activity at the same the opportunity to learn.

2. Swimming lessons. The Cebu City Sports Center is active again with a lot of workshops and educational summer activities it offers to children and teenagers. For coach Matheus Ceasar, 24, swimming has become his main livelihood and a source of contentment. Since 16, he already started to train kids and teenagers on how to swim, saying “I find joy in this job.”

After all, a person’s skill is key in starting a money making service like swimming training, he said. Trainers like him are paid well, a reason why he believes this is a better work than other jobs around.

Summer is also the peak earning season for coaches and trainers because of the increase in enrolment in summer camps.

3. Sports clinics. A veteran basketball trainer, Giovanni Romarate, also believes that a person can actually turn sports coaching as a source of  money as he has been benefiting from such endeavor.

Aside from it, can help you earn a quick buck, coaching also provides life-long skills and abilities to the trainees.

“Puhonan nimo talent ra gyud ug willingness nga motudlo makakwarta gyud ka,” he noted.

Although he stressed earning should not be the top most priority in this case, but rather the persistence to do more on molding the learner to become a skillful athlete.

“Devoted gyud ka aron mahinumdoman ka nila, kay kung magkakita mo og balik proud na sila nimo,” he concluded. (FREEMAN)